Lifestyle

If you've spent money on a vacation, the last thing you want to do is spend your time on business calls while you should be relaxing. Many small business owners debate whether to try to put their business on hold or to take it with them. Here are some tips to make...

Unless you’re a car enthusiast, you probably don’t want to spend a lot of free time car shopping, especially as a business owner. As the saying goes, “time is money,” and for entrepreneurs that truly is the case. If you’re not trying to relax, you’re working towards...

Are you tired of watching employees stare longingly out at the amazing weather this summer season? The distraction of the outdoors can diminish productivity. For a small business or a budding start-up, every dollar counts. Hosting a company picnic is a perfect...

One of the biggest unintended side effects of running your own small business is the effect it can have on your personal life — not to mention your downtime. Whether you miss quality time with your family or important outings with friends, sacrifices need to be made...

We’ve been hearing about it for years now, but it’s time to finally take a serious look at how a four-day workweek could impact your life. Besides the obvious bonus of an extended weekend, there could be some unintended side effects. For one, the days you do work...

We know how easy it is to get stuck in your daily routine, especially if you are a business owner. Entrepreneurs must be aware of many things, so having a schedule may grant you the ability to address whatever you have to do with ease. But you can also lose out on a...

Despite what Hollywood adaptations may lead you to believe, the life of the working entrepreneur is rarely glamorous. The real-world life of an aspiring entrepreneur isn’t all it’s been rumored to be. For every social media celebrity sporting an Armani suit...

Entrepreneurship comes in all shapes and sizes, and here at AFEUSA, we might know that better than anyone. If you have a driving passion in a given field, there’s nothing stopping you from turning it into a career. That’s happens to be the main idea behind the concept...

Did you know that only 8 percent of people are able to achieve their goals? That is because most people don't know how to properly organize their time and tasks to complete everything they must do to get themselves to where they want to be. The year is already well...

There’s no such thing as a perfect life, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t strive for what our perfect life looks like in the real world. You’re going to get sidetracked. The sooner you accept that, the easier it will be. Even if you make a concrete hierarchy of what...

Everyone dreams of having a perfect rejection-free life. We want things to work out exactly the way we originally planned and live a life of success after success. Unfortunately, that’s never how life works out. Rather than a steady, forward motion, life is more like...

The work-life balance is a delicate thing. It can sometimes feel like putting more effort into one takes away from the other, but it doesn’t have to be that way. If we took as much time to plan as we did to worry, we wouldn’t have anything to worry about in the first...

Every true entrepreneur wants his or her business to succeed, but unfortunately, a huge percentage of business owners fail within the first two years. Now that we’re into 2019, it’s important to know how to keep your business thriving for yet another year. You could...

I’ve met several people who have struggled to run businesses and even had to close their businesses because they lacked quality leadership skills. Maybe they don’t work as well with others as they thought or simply don’t fully understand what it means to be a leader....

Let’s be real here: how often do we promise to commit to our new year’s resolutions, only to forget about it by February? Just the other day, I was getting ahead on some of my spring cleaning and I found a list I had made to ensure I stuck to my 2018 resolutions. It...

Years ago, building a company meant buying a storefront on a corner in your neighborhood. Your loved ones spread the word and loyal friends and family members kept you in business. You had to be physically close to your customers to provide products and services for...

If you’re like me, Thanksgiving can kind of be a gamble when it comes to table conversation. Some years, the family can keep things light and fun and we end the holiday with big smiles and full bellies. Other times, someone makes the mistake of bringing up politics or...

2018 is coming to an end more quickly than we realize. Do you remember what resolutions you made almost a year ago? How long were you able to keep them up? I made it until about April before they went out the window. It wasn’t until a few days ago when I thought about...

Thanksgiving has always been my favorite holiday. Not just because my grandma makes the best cranberry sauce, but because of the traditions my family set focusing on gratitude. We went around in circles sharing things we were grateful for, watched old family videos...

They say “nothing ventured, nothing gained.” I’m not sure who “they” are, but they make the risk of failure seem way more simple than it really is. It can be a devastating blow to you and your organization. When you invest your heart and soul into your...

All right, we’ve talked about imposter syndrome. We’ve talked about learning to handle rejection and facing all sorts of fears you might face as you start up your business. But beneath all that, you might still have your doubts. So when you have these...

Do you ever wake up, think about everything that you need to get done for the day, and just groan? Those early Monday mornings can hit hard. Contrary to popular belief, doing what you love doesn’t actually mean you never have to actually work. Running a...

Have you ever heard of Imposter Syndrome? It’s a regular phenomenon people experience when they don’t feel like they’re good enough to be doing what they’re doing. Maybe you once received a promotion at work you didn’t feel you were qualified for, or you...

In my last article, I talked about why you don’t necessarily need a business degree to run your own business. And while I still stand by that, I also want to talk about why having that degree can be helpful for you. I mentioned it in the last article — a...

“What if you just started your own organization?”    I laughed when my friend mentioned this idea. I graduated in communication with an emphasis in journalism. I took several management classes, but other than that I knew nothing about running a...

The day I graduated with my Bachelor’s degree was not as bright and celebratory as I always imagined it would be. As friends and family members around me celebrated, I couldn’t help but think about the dark cloud ahead of me: student loans. It had loomed...

When my friend suggested I take MBA classes while establishing my own startup, I thought he was crazy. Completing just one of those tasks is daunting enough on its own. I worked just enough to get myself through my undergraduate, but being an entrepreneur...

The internet's free exchange of ideas makes it easier than ever to learn about real-world issues that affect your company. There’s never been a better time to be in business. As the world has grown increasingly interconnected, the internet has become a veritable...

Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) SCORE is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides free business mentoring services to entrepreneurs in the United States. The organization also presents business workshops and seminars for a fee. Business mentoring...

AFEUSA knows that through association, there be success when starting, maintaining and growing a business. True entrepreneurs aren't just born, they are created. They are inspired, supported and nurtured by those around them every day. Continually exposing individuals...

Emotional intelligence is an underrated quality for entrepreneurs, and a crucial one for employees. Simply put, it’s your ability to recognize and control your emotions, and to recognize and understand the emotions of others. But, why is this quality...